The South African educational curriculum history teaches our youth that Robben Island was the cruellest of all apartheid prisons in the country not only is this taught to South Africans but foreigners too who are interested in South African Politics.
Political icons such as the former president of South Africa Dr Nelson Mandela,the late Goven Mbeki and many other unrecognised freedom fighters were imprisoned at the Island during the 80s and it seems they had it good. A Beautiful scenery of the Table Mountain, the deep blue seas and most of one of the best structured prisons in South Africa.
The prison was divide into three catergories A,B and C, this was a way to distinguish how good the prisoners are and each group had its benefits. This was not the only thing Sipho Nkosi an ex prisoner from the Robben Island said, we had the joys of educating ourselves whilst in prison hence Nelson Mandela was a qualified Lawyer when he was released from prison.
Compared to many other prisons in the country such as the former Johannesburg prison which is now known as the Constitutional hill, Robben Island had proper prison cells with more than one blanket, a division between the toilets and the kitchen and a study hall whilst at the Johannesburg prison “we had the toilet and prison at the same place”, says Thabo Mokoena who is a tour guide at the prison.
This is rather a disturbing as to how we portray the prison to our society and tourists or those who are just interested in South African history.
What does this say about our history as a country and the manner in which we document our history? One of the students from the Tshwane University of Technology exclaimed “what is history really teaching our youth?”, “Robben Island was just a luxurious prison”, she said. Though all of these might be true the island had hard conditions in contrary with the natural beauty it has.
The limestone caves and the torture of the special branch police got to the prisoners.
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